December Club Meeting: The December
meeting will be held at Antonio’s Corner Restaurant, 3700 Michigan Avenue in
Cleveland at 6:00PM on Friday, December 12.We
will be ordering from the menu. A gift is to be brought by each attendee
valued at $10-$15 for the gift swap. The installation of new officers will
be held.

Directions:
Antonio’s is located at the corner of Michigan Avenue & Stuart Road, east of
the YMCA. For additional information call 559-9716. For a change of pace,
we will order from a menu rather than bringing a potluck dish. The
restaurant features Italian & Greek cuisine and also pastries!

The
Cherokee Hiking Club held its annual Christmas party and Installation of
Officers Ceremony. The theme was titled "Sweet Time." A chocolate candy
bar was given to each officer symbolizing the duties of each office. The
officers for 2009 are (left-to-right): Randy Morris, President; James
Anderson, Vice-President; Jane Bohannon, Secretary; Ann Gray, Treasurer, Deborah Flower, Publicist,
Verna Townsend, Newsletter Editor, and Rick Harris, Web Master.

Minutes of the Meeting:

The Cherokee Hiking Club met
on December 12, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. at Antonio’s in Cleveland for the monthly
meeting and annual Christmas party. There were thirty members present.
Prior to the meal, President Randy Morris called a brief business meeting to
order at 6:30 p.m. Minutes of the previous meeting were omitted and can be
read in the newsletter or on line. The treasurer’s report was given by
Treasurer Ann Gray. The current balance was provided.

Old business:
The club is still considering using name tags for meetings. Paper name tags
were used at this meeting and worked well. A couple of samples were shown.

Club tee shirts are still
available for $15.00 except for size small.

New Business:
James Anderson suggested using name tags for our meetings. Randy will check
on prices for permanent name tags for members. Paper ones are an option for
guests and new members. Randy reminded us to start thinking of a place and
date for our hike planning meeting coming up soon after January. The club
voted to pay the tips for tonight’s meal.

Hike Planning Meeting for
2009: The
meeting will be at James and Phyllis Anderson’s home Sunday, January 4 at
2:00 p.m. Hike leaders may submit hikes which they will lead even though
they may not be able to attend the meeting, but leaders must submit 2-3
possible dates for their hikes if they don’t attend.

Hikes completed: The
following hikes were reported: John Muir Reroute led by Clayton Pannell,
Linda Davis Memorial Walk led by Belinda Mantooth, Dry Pond Lead led by
Randy, Unicoi Turnpike led by Marc Bernatti.

Upcoming hikes:
Randy will be leading the Indian Flatts Falls hike tomorrow. At this time
no further hikes are planned until the planning session on January 4.

The installation ceremony
was titled “Sweet Time.” Debbie used candy bars to demonstrate the
importance of club members working together and to show that everyone is
important in completing tasks. The installation ceremony was followed by
the exchanging of Christmas gifts. Everyone shared an interesting hiking
story while opening a gift. Since there was no further business, the
party/meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.

January Club Meeting:
The next monthly meeting will be January 8 at Antonio’s in Cleveland at 6:30
p.m.

The 2009 Hiking Planning
Meeting held at the home of James and Phyllis Anderson on Sunday, January
4 beginning at 2 p.m. At this meeting we will determine (as completely
as possible) the 2009 hike schedule for the Cherokee Hiking Club. If you
cannot make the meeting, but would still like to lead one or more hikes in
2009, please email the name of the hike, length and difficulty rating and
at least 2 or 3 possible dates for the hike(s) to Rick Harris atharrisri@aol.com.

Directions to the Anderson’s
home are in the newsletter.

The meeting was adjourned at
8:30 PM.

2009 Club Dues"
Please remember that as the New Year rolls in, your 2009 Cherokee Hiking
Club Membership Dues need to do likewise to treasurer Ann Gray. 2009 dues
are $15 (and do include anyone in your immediate family that would like to
be a part of our organization). We had an exciting 2008 and look forward to
an even better 2009!

Attention New Members:
Anyone who joined after October 1, 2008 will not have to renew until 2010.

Checks may be brought to the
Hike Planning Meeting on January 4, the January 8 club meeting or mailed to
Ann Gray. It will not be necessary to fill out a membership form unless
your contact information has changed. All dues must be paid by March to
remain a member for 2009.